Family Farm Membership

CSA stands for Community Supported Agriculture.

Community-supported agriculture (CSA model) or cropsharing is a system that connects farmers and consumers within the food system closer by allowing the consumer to subscribe to the harvest of a certain farm or group of farms. It is an alternative socioeconomic model of agriculture and food distribution that allows the producer and consumer to share the risks of farming. The model is a subcategory of civic agriculture that has an overarching goal of strengthening a sense of community through local markets.

In return for subscribing to a harvest, subscribers typically receive either a weekly or bi-weekly box of produce or other farm goods. This includes in-season fruits, vegetables, and can expand to dried goods, eggs, milk, meat, etc. Farmers cultivate a relationship with subscribers by sending newsletters, inviting them for harvest, or holding an open-farm event.

Barakah Heritage Farm has expanded the CSA concept into livestock and educational activities, as well as offering the more traditional harvest.

Family Farm Members – Barakah Heritage Farm | Facebook

Not at this time.  We value the pleasure of harvesting, and don’t want to rob you and your family of that experience.  So, we are a u-pick location only at this time.

However, we do share a private membership list among the members, showing just the family’s last name and their city, state.  We are glad to help you coordinate a delivery with a family near you.  We will harvest your share for $15.

Yes, we offer both.  But…farm members are our first priority.  So, we are a u-pick location first, and a farm stand after.

We are still working to complete the garden.  The list of produce below are waiting to be transplanted as soon as the beds are done.  We cannot predict what the yield will be for this first planting season in the new garden.

GREENS

Arugula; Kale; Mixed Lettuces; Swiss Chard; Spinach; Turnip

PRODUCE

Bush beans; Peas; Beets; Pumpkins; Turnips; Radishes; Brussel sprouts; Cabbage; Carrots; Shallots/green onions; Tomatoes

Exotic produce:

Rouge Vif D’ Etampes Pumpkin

Scarlet Kale

Thousandhead Kale

Dazzling Blue Kale

De 18 Jours Radish

Helios Radish

Wasabi Arugula

Forellenschluss Lettuce

Lunix Lettuce

Stay tuned!

We will announce the spring and summer 2023 planned crops sometime this fall.

Stay tuned!

We will announce the spring and summer 2023 planned crops sometime this fall.

Yes.

We have a produce wash station with running cold water for you to clean up your harvest (and hands).

We do suggest not washing eggs, as it removes the bloom (a coating on the egg that comes from the hen) which protects and preserves them.

Yes!

We ask that at least one adult member of your family be present.  We offer a 1 For 1 program – for each member of your family you may bring 1 guest.  Please note that your total harvest amount remains the same.

We are also happy to harvest your share for you for $15 and help you coordinate delivery with another family in your area.

Members may credit a missed weekend to another weekend that same month.

Members may not credit a missed weekend to a future month, or to a future season.

Full share members that are entitled to 4 weekends per month may ask for a prorated refund.  Limit 2 prorated refunds for full share members per year, and 1 per season.  If you are missing your weekend more often than that, we suggest downgrading to a smaller share.

Yes.  We will either provide a prorated refund or invoice you.  Please contact us to make arrangements.  You may only change your membership once per year.

We will be offering our regular farm and animal educational experiences.  Please see our Activities page for those details.

In addition we will offer special classes and events just for members.  Watch our newsletter for announcements and check the calendar for dates.

Depending upon which membership plan you selected, you may harvest once, twice or four times per month.  For example, if you chose the plan that provides one weekend per month, then you may make one harvest sometime between Friday afternoon and Sunday evening of that weekend.  If you chose the plan with four weekends per month, then every weekend during the month, you may make one harvest between Friday afternoon and Sunday evening.

You may not harvest on multiple days in a single weekend, or harvest multiple times in one day.

Quantities are intended to be a sampler of unique food items that supplement and add variety to your regular food purchases, rather than providing all your produce for the week or month.

The estimated retail value of each harvest is roughly $20-$30, and the price will be lower than or equal to the organic produce at the grocery store.  Generally you will take home at least one full shopping bag or 4 quarts with each harvest, or a combination of the two.  We will provide reuseable and returnable quart containers and bags and ask that you not fill additional containers or bags. The number of bags and containers will vary each month, depending upon what is in season.  For example, salad greens are typically bagged but tomatoes are put in quart containers.  We do not weigh your items.

We encourage you to taste test and sample while you harvest – that is part of the fun.  Please be considerate of the other families and do not overindulge, or pick and discard items.

Disclaimer: As a Family Farm Member, you recognize that due to the inherent risks of farming, there are no guarantees on the exact amount of farm products you will receive due to weather extremes, insects, and/or other production factors.  Also due to the inherent risks of farming, we cannot guarantee access to a particular animal or experience.  You are willing to share the risks of farming and reap the benefits along with us, the farmers. We do guarantee prorated no-questions-asked refunds.  We ask our Members for your understanding of farm up-and-downs and encourage you to be patient with the unpredictability of animals and plants.  Thank you for your understanding, and support of our local farm!  

YES!  Yes, yes yes!

We cannot emphasize this enough.  We WANT you to come, work alongside us, learn about farming and get to know the team and other members, become part of our farm family.

This is the BEST part of becoming a CSA member.

If you would like to come help out, please contact us and set up a time.

Maybe.

Our first priority will always be making sure that our farm members each get their full promised amount.  Depending upon how many members we expect that day, and what is ready to harvest, there may be additional produce or eggs available for sale in our self-serve farm stand.

Not at this time.

(Are you interested in becoming a bee keeper?  If yes, please get in touch, as we would love to incubate a small bee business here on the farm.)

Not at this time.

We do not have milk or milk products for sale at this time.  We do however allow members to volunteer to help us milk goats, and you are welcome to take home a sample for your pets.

We think our chicken and duck eggs are better than organic!

While we are not an organic certified farm, all our poultry forage for their meals, either free range or in roomy mobile enclosures, and we raise their supplemental feed right here on the farm.

We encourage you to help us gather eggs, and may send you home with a sample.  At this time, while our flock is growing and because egg laying is seasonal (our hens take a break in winter), we do not guarantee any amount of eggs for Farm Members.  We may occasionally have eggs for sale in the farm stand.

We are also happy to get you started with a flock of your own at home – ask us how.

All our CSA members have free admission to any booked animal or farm tour.

In addition, our CSA members have exclusive access to visit the animals at their pens during the day.

Please see our Activities page and calendar for available organized activities.

Horsemanship lessons and horseback riding are not currently included in the Family Farm Membership CSA package.

We do offer horsemanship in partnership with East West Equestrian Arts (based at the farm) for an additional fee.  Please see the website for details.

We have 2 designated furnished picnic areas just for our CSA members plus safe zones where you can put down a blanket anywhere your family chooses.

We do not currently allow camping but hope to offer a fully-furnished glamping site for CSA members only in 2023.  Watch our newsletter for announcements.

We have 2 picnic areas, available by reservation for Farm Members only, first come first serve.

Both areas have a tent for private family time or napping children.  We provide nap mats or cots, disinfectant spray and hand sanitizer.  Please bring your own nap bedding.

Picnic areas have lawn chairs or folding camp chairs.

Picnic areas have a fire ring, fire wood, a grill grate to place on top, and basic grill tools – tongs, spatula, skewers.

Picnic areas have either a propane grill or a charcoal grill, in addition to the fire ring.

Both picnics areas have a low fence to slow down escaping children.  These are not certified child-proof fences, they just buy you time to get out of your chair and sprint after the little ones.

Both picnic areas have a small solar wash station with sun-warmed water for washing up.  We provide hand sanitizer, paper towels, and farm-safe hand soap.

Both picnic areas have a drinking water dispenser.

The bathroom for both picnic areas is the portable toilet located at the red barn where you signed in.

We do not currently have wifi available, but we are working on a solution.

There is an emergency care center in Shrewsbury a few minutes from the farm.

Pets are not allowed on the farm, nor are emotional support animals.  Please do not leave your animals in or near your car.

Documented service animals that meet the legal ADA definition of a service animal are allowed.  We ask that you please notify us in advance if you are bringing a service animal, as we have dogs guarding our livestock,  working farm dogs on duty, and easily-frightened animals.  We will gladly make special arrangements to accommodate your ADA service animal.

Please do not enter the streams or pond.  These are delicate spring-fed waterways that provide our household drinking water, water our animals, support local wildlife and then flow downstream for our neighbors.  Help us keep them clean.

We are working on making some areas of the farm ADA accessible.  Please ask us for details.

We welcome suggestions on how to make changes to make the farm more accessible for everyone.

Smoking is allowed at or in your car, or in the picnic areas.

Alcohol is not allowed.

We are family-friendly.  No bathing suits.  Shoes must be worn at all times for safety and we encourage you to avoid sandals and flip flops for safety around the animals.

Music is allowed in picnic areas as long as the music cannot be heard outside the area.

We have been working in the family personal gardens for 40+ years.  Carrie’s family also had a 200 acre hobby farm in eastern Maryland.  Carrie’s father was raised on a farm and always had a greenhouse and family garden, and her paternal grandfather was an agriculture professor in Indiana.  Carrie studied soils and crop science in college as part of her horse production minor.

Khalil has studied permaculture and biointensive gardening for a number of years, and applied his studies on his family’s farm in Missouri.

2022 is our first season developing an ADA-accessible garden and applying biointensive and intercropping principles on a large scale.

We began hosting the public in 2018, although Carrie has been teaching and working with the public off site for 35 years.

Yes.

If at any time in the future we offer farm products that are produced locally off our farm, we would notify the members in advance and clearly label the items.

Fall of 2022 is our membership launch.  Our goal is 10 families for the fall 2022 season.  We will update the website with a membership count as often as possible.  Please feel free to ask us for details.

2022 is our first season of family farm memberships.  We are happy to provide references from families that have been involved with our farm for at least a year through our other membership programs or as regular visitors.  You are also welcome to come out for our free orientation tour Saturdays at 10am or Sundays at 3pm.  Please schedule your free tour in advance by phone 717-759-4242 or email info@barakah.farm .